Two Birmingham businesses are part of the first 10 chosen by Shipt for its LadderUp accelerator program.

Firms from Atlanta, Detroit, Houston and Washington, D.C were also chosen from hundreds of applications for the program, which addresses food insecurity issues in underserved communities.

These businesses will participate in an eight-week program to learn about topics like driving sustainable growth, building a financial foundation, efficiency, marketing, e-commerce and legal knowledge needed to run a business.

Shipt Chief People and Community Officer Amy Benson said the program aims to “advance economic opportunities for underrepresented communities.” According to the company, 60% of the businesses selected have LGBTQ+ or BIPOC ownership, a goal of the program.

The Birmingham businesses selected are:

Bama Health Foods, a Birmingham-based health food store looking to expand its online presence and reach beyond its physical store.

“As a women-owned business, we will be able to share our knowledge with other small businesses as well in order to strengthen our minority-owned business ecosystem,” Jacquie Fazekas, the owner, said.

House Plant Collective, an indoor plant retailer, which looks to strengthen its online presence and marketing.

“As a retail plant shop based in Birmingham, we believe this program will help take HPC to the next level by sharing the joy of house plants with others nationwide by shipping a variety of tropical indoor plants and botanical goods,” owner Jessica Watts said.